Albuquerque police sued over Mariah Voigt’s 2024 fatal shooting
The family of Mariah Voigt is asking a federal court to expand their wrongful death lawsuit against the Albuquerque Police Department, arguing the 2024 shooting that killed her could have been prevented with a change in department policy. Attorneys for the family have filed to add a new argument to the suit, claiming APD drone operators saw Voigt holding a cell phone but did not relay that to officers on the ground.
APD has said the March 2024 shooting of the 32-year-old happened when she ran from officers near Candelaria and Eubank after being accused of stealing her mom’s car. Police caught up with Voigt in a backyard shed, where a drone operator watched Voigt and tried to figure out what was in her hand, according to the department.
When Voigt exited the shed, police said she pointed a phone, which was mistaken for a gun, leading an officer to shoot her. In a recent legal filing, the family claims the drone operator saw Voigt holding a cell phone but did not share that information with the officers.
The family’s attorneys want APD to adopt a policy to inform arrest teams when suspects are holding items that could be misidentified as weapons. “Officers mistaking cell phones for guns is foreseeable. That’s why it’s so important if drone operators see someone with a cell phone in their hand, that the arrest teams are made aware that it’s a non-weapon,” said Mariah Voigt’s family attorney Shannon Kennedy.
The complaint also references 10 other deadly shooting cases involving APD in which people were in a mental crisis. “The Voigt family is trying to honor all of these families and recognize these losses and make changes,” Kennedy said. “At the end of the day, the city has a duty to accommodate people who are in states of psychosis.”
KRQE News reported that APD was asked about the new argument in the Voigt case. A department spokesperson said they would respond in court. A March trial has been set in the wrongful death lawsuit.
